CUSHION FORMED OF ARTICULATELY INTERCONNECTED PILLOW SECTIONS

Abstract

The cushion is formed of a plurality of articulately interconnected pillow members in side-by-side relation such that the pillow members can be configured in a variety of different orientations. The pillow members are each formed of a resilient core enclosed in fabric covering. The pillow members each have substantially the same size and cylindrical shape with a flattened bottom. Adjacent pillow members are connected by sections of the fabric. The fabric has top and bottom sections. Resilient cores in spaced, parallel relation are situated on the bottom fabric section. The top fabric section is folded over the resilient cores. The top and bottom sections are stitched together along the fabric between adjacent resilient cores to form a flexible connection.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to cushions and more particularly to a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members which can be configured in different orientations to suit a variety of different applications.

2. Description of Prior Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98

Cushion and pillow products of many different shapes and sizes are known in the art. Usually including a core formed of foam or other resilient material situated in a cover made of fabric, the shape and size of the product is designed for a specific purpose and is not changeable in use. Thus, a product of a particular size and shape may be excellent for one application, such as supporting the head of an individual lying in bed but may not be suitable for a different application, such as supporting the back of an individual sitting in a chair.

It is therefore a prime object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members which can be reconfigured to suit a variety of different applications.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members of substantially the same shape and size.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members in which the pillow members are situated in side-by-side spaced relation.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members in which the pillow members are each substantially cylindrical with a flattened bottom portion.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members in which the flattened bottom portions of adjacent pillow members are connected by sections of the fabric covering.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members which is easy to use.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members which is simple in design and inexpensive to fabricate.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To those and such other objects which may appear, the present invention relates to a cushion formed of a plurality of elongated pillow members articulately interconnected in side-by-side relation such that the pillow members can be configured in a variety of different orientations. The pillow members are formed of a core of resilient material enclosed in and covered by a fabric sheet.

The pillow members have substantially the same shape and size. Preferably, the pillow members are substantially cylindrical with a flattened bottom portion. The flattened bottom portions of adjacent pillow members are connected by a flexible section of the fabric covering.

The flattened bottom portion of each of the pillow members has a first side and a second side. An arcuate portion of the fabric covering extends between the first side and the second side of the pillow member.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for fabricating a cushion formed of a plurality of articulately connected elongated pillow members each including a core made of resilient material. The method includes the steps of: forming a cushion covering having a top section and a bottom section from a sheet of fabric; placing the resilient cores in spaced, generally parallel relation on the bottom section of the fabric sheet; folding the top section of the fabric sheet over the resilient cores situated on the bottom section of the fabric sheet; and stitching the top section of the fabric sheet and the bottom section of the fabric sheet together along the fabric between adjacent resilient cores to form an articulate connection between adjacent pillow members.

A portion of the bottom section of the fabric sheet extends beyond the ends of the resilient cores. The method further includes the step of stitching the portion of the bottom section which extends beyond the ends of the resilient cores to the edge of the top section of the fabric cover to fully enclose each pillow member.

The pillow members are formed to have the same substantially cylindrical shape and size. The pillow members are formed to have a substantially flattened bottom portion. The flattened portion of each of the pillow members is formed to have a first side and a second side. A portion of the top section extends between the first side and the second side, over the resilient core.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF DRAWINGS

To these and to such other objects that may hereinafter appear, the present invention relates to a cushion formed of articulately interconnected pillow members as described in detail in the following specification and recited in the annexed claims, taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals refer to like parts and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the cushion of the present invention in a flat configuration;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the cushion of FIG. 1 taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the cushion of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of the cushion of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a view of the cushion of the present invention in which the pillow members are arranged a circular configuration for use in supporting head of an individual lying in bed;

FIG. 6 is a view of the cushion of the present invention in a configuration suitable for supporting the back of an individual sitting in a chair;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the step in the method of fabricating the cushion of the present invention in which a cushion covering having a top section and a bottom section is formed from a sheet of fabric;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of the step in the method of fabricating the cushion of the present invention in which the resilient cores are placed in spaced, generally parallel relation on the bottom section of the fabric sheet;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the step in the method of fabricating the cushion of the present invention in which the top section of the fabric sheet is folded over the resilient cores on the bottom section; and

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of the step in the method of fabricating the cushion of the present invention in which the top section of the fabric sheet and the bottom section of the fabric sheet have been stitched together including along the border between adjacent resilient cores to form an articulate connection between the pillow members.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As seen in FIGS. 1-4, the present invention relates to a cushion, generally designated A, formed of a plurality of articulately interconnected pillow members 10, five of which are illustrated in the preferred embodiment. However, are many pillow members 10 over two can be included as appropriate for the intended purpose.

Pillow members 10 are preferably all substantially the same shape and size and are separated from each other by substantially the same distance, Each pillow member 10 is substantially cylindrical except for a substantially flattened bottom portion 12. The bottom portions 12 of the pillow members are interconnected by flexible sections of the bottom portion 14 of fabric cover 16 such that the pillow members can be arranged in a variety of different configurations.

Each pillow member 10 is formed of a substantially cylindrical resilient core 18 of foam or similar resilient material. The pillow cores 18 are all situated in generally parallel spaced relation within a fabric sheet which will become a cover 16.

Cover 16 includes a bottom portion 14 and a top portion 20. The cover portions are sewn together as explained in detail below to completely enclose each resilient core 18 and provide a flexible fabric section 22 which extends between and articulately interconnects adjacent pillow members 10.

As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 4, cover sections 14, 20 are sewn together between the pillow members to form the interconnecting fabric sections 22 with the bottom cover portion 14 extending across the flat portions 12 of the pillow members and portion of top cover section 20 extending from one side of the flattened bottom portion of each pillow member to the other, over the pillow core 18, in an arcuate manner.

FIGS. 7-10 illustrate a preferred method of fabricating the cushion of the present invention. FIG. 7 shows the top section 20 and the bottom section 14 of the fabric sheet 16 which will form cover 16 before the pillow cores 18 are placed on the sheet. The opposite edges of the bottom section 14 of the fabric sheet are provided with generally semi-circular flaps 24 which will cover the ends of the resilient cores.

FIG. 8 shows the cover 14 with the pillow cores 18 situated on the bottle section 14 of the cover in parallel spaced relation.

FIG. 9 shows the top section 20 of the fabric sheet folded over the pillow cores 18 on the bottom section 14 of the cover.

FIG. 10 shows the completed cushion after the flaps 24 are stitched in place at the ends of the pillow members and the portions of the top fabric section and the bottom fabric section between adjacent pillow members are stitched together to form interconnecting fabric sections. This figure also shows the stitch pattern 22 of each interconnecting fabric section is preferably an elongated rectangle which extends from a location spaced a short distance from the edge of the cushion at each end.

While only a single preferred embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed for purposes of illustration, it is obvious that many modifications and variations could be made thereto. It is intended to cover all of those modifications and variations which fall within the scope of the present invention, as defined by the following claims.

Claims

1. A cushion comprising a plurality of elongated pillow members articulately interconnected in side-by-side relation.

2. The cushion of claim 1 wherein said pillow members have substantially the same shape.

3. The cushion of claim 1 wherein said pillow members have substantially the same size.

4. The cushion of claim 2 wherein said pillow members have substantially the same size.

5. The cushion of claim 1 wherein said pillow members are substantially cylindrical in shape.

6. The cushion of claim 1 wherein each of said pillow members has a substantially flattened bottom portion.

7. The cushion of claim 6 comprising means for articulately connecting said flat portions of adjacent pillow members.

8. The cushion of claim 1 comprising flexible means for connecting adjacent pillow members.

9. The cushion of claim 8 wherein said connecting means comprises a section of fabric.

10. The cushion of claim 6 wherein said substantially flattened bottom portion of each pillow members comprises a first side and a second side, and further comprising an arcuate portion extending between said first side and said second side and over a resilient core.

11. The cushion of claim 1 wherein each of the pillow sections comprises a fabric covering.

12. The cushion of claim 11 wherein each of said pillow sections comprises a resilient core within said fabric covering.

13. A cushion comprising a plurality of adjacent pillow members of substantially the same size and shape articulately interconnected by fabric.

14. A cushion comprising a plurality of pillow members articulately interconnected in spaced, substantially parallel relation.

15. A method of fabricating a cushion comprising a plurality of articulately interconnected elongated pillow members each including a resilient core, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) forming a cushion covering having a top section and a bottom section from a sheet of fabric;

(b) placing a plurality of resilient cores in spaced, generally parallel relation on the bottom section of the fabric sheet;

(c) folding the top section of the fabric sheet over the resilient cores on the bottom section; and

(d) stitching the top section of the fabric sheet and the bottom section of the fabric sheet together along the fabric between adjacent resilient cores to form an articulate connection between the pillow members.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein a portion of the bottom section extends beyond the ends of the resilient cores and further comprising the step of sewing the portion of the bottom section which extends beyond the ends of the resilient bodies to the edge of the top section to fully enclose each pillow member.

17. The method of claim 15 wherein the pillow members are formed to have substantially the same shape.

18. The method of claim 15 wherein the pillow members are formed to have substantially the same size.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein the pillow members are formed to be substantially cylindrical in shape.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein each of the pillow members is formed to have a substantially flattened bottom portion.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein the substantially flattened portion of each of the pillow members is formed to have a first side and a second side, and further comprising the step of attaching a portion of the top section between the first side and the second side and over the resilient core.

22. The method of claim 16 wherein the step of stitching the top section and the bottom section together comprises the step of stitching in a rectangular pattern.